12/7/11

Research Post: Cory Archangel

Cory Archangel (May 25, 1978) is a multi-media artist based in Boston, NY. Music, video, performance work, drawing, Photoshop manipulation, web based work, and video game cartridge circuit bending make up the bulk of his work which explores the relationships between culture and technology. Almost all of his work  incorporates appropriated footage, such as Sweet 16, in which Cory took the intro lick to Guns n' Roses "Sweet Child o' Mine" and phased it to itself for sixteen minutes.  The resulting music, which is accompanied by footage of GNR playing the song, is a beautiful video who's music weaves in and out of itself, and creates an entirely unique sound which still manages to be reminiscent of the original.




Cory's web-based work is also very thought inspiring, commenting on popular culture and the informative and commercialist properties of the internet.  One such web-based work, "Punk Rock 101," has Curt Cobain's suicide note posted on a website with Google ads spaced intermittently throughout.  Cory's intention was to take a piece of musical history and basically consumerize it, and the end result is a rather chilling and I feel intentionally heartless take on one man's rejection of his current life.

http://www.coryarcangel.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Cory-Arcangel-kurt_clean.jpg

I was most interested in Cory's video game manipulation pieces, where he takes classic NES videogame cartridges and reprograms them.  His video Super Mario Movie is a fifteen minute look in the world of a video game character that is deteriorating due to program corruption.  I love how Cory Archangel essentially humanizes these fictional characters by destroying their world, causing us to feel empathy towards them.




For more of Cory Archangel's work, you can go to http://www.coryarcangel.com/things-i-made/
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4 comments:

  1. Ruth DivineDecember 7, 2011 at 8:05 PM

    I really liked Paganini’s 5th Caprice by Cory. The edits were nicely done. Each note played felt like only one person was playing it on their guitar. Watching Sweet Child o Mine sounded just like the song. I was waiting for it to keep playing the whole song very cool!

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  2. Krystal VivianDecember 9, 2011 at 9:17 AM

    As soon as I got to the video game manipulation part, I knew this was your post Jon, haha. I really like the Super Mario Bros. video. Do you read any kind of video game theory at all? The video reminded me of the "Super Mario Bros. 3 is a figment of Mario's imagination" theory. Crazy to think of video games in terms like that.

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  3. ajsoriaDecember 9, 2011 at 12:19 PM

    I also enjoyed the video game video. I'm also a fan of GNR as well so I got a kick out of that vid. Its very interesting reading these research posts to see how each artists views the world through their art. Each has something different to say based on what he sees.

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  4. KeriDecember 9, 2011 at 6:19 PM

    I love the video game part. Its incredible and also pretty interesting and most people can relate with video games. Especially mario
    This guy is actually really interesting good job :D

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